If you opt for a permanent retainer after completing orthodontic treatment, you may wonder how you’re supposed to floss your teeth. Rest assured, you can continue to floss thoroughly, even with a permanent retainer. Read on for everything to know about how to floss with a permanent retainer once you’ve had one placed by your orthodontist.
What is a Permanent Retainer?
A permanent retainer is an orthodontic appliance that keeps your teeth aligned and retains the proper alignment of your teeth after your braces are removed. Permanent retainers may also be called fixed or bonded retainers because they are bonded to the backside of your teeth. A fixed or permanent retainer may last decades, and it should only be removed by your orthodontist. A permanent retainer is essentially a lingual wire that typically runs along the backside of the front teeth — usually 4–6 — on either the upper or lower arch. In some cases, they may be placed on both the upper and lower arch.
Permanent retainers eliminate the risk of losing or breaking a removable retainer. Permanent retainers are also invisible when you smile. Patients who opt for a permanent retainer may have fewer follow-up appointments. If you get a permanent retainer, you also won’t run the risk of your teeth drifting back into old positions, and won’t incur the cost of a new removable retainer should yours become damaged. However, it can take some time to get used to flossing if you have a permanent retainer.
Skipping flossing is never a good idea — without a consistent oral hygiene routine, plaque buildup, tartar buildup, gum inflammation, and even gum disease can develop around the retainer wire. Keeping your teeth clean and maintaining gum health requires making flossing part of your daily routine, even with a fixed appliance.
Flossing With a Permanent Retainer: 3 Techniques
Because the lingual wire will span a couple to several teeth, you will not be able to floss normally with string floss or traditional floss. The wire will prevent the dental floss from reaching the gum line. With the right tools, however, you can achieve a thorough cleaning of hard-to-reach areas between teeth and along the gum line — supporting plaque removal, gum health, and fresher breath.
1. Use a Water Flosser
One of the best ways to clean properly with a permanent retainer is to invest in a water flosser. Water flossers are available at most pharmacies and big box stores such as Target or Walmart. You also order one online.
Water flossing (commonly known as Water Piks) use pulsating water streams to remove plaque and food particles, loose food particles, sticky plaque, and buildup between the teeth and along the gum line — even in tight spaces the retainer wire makes difficult to reach. Studies have shown that water flossers are as effective as traditional floss in reducing plaque. Using a water flosser does not fully replace string floss for every patient, but it is widely considered the easiest cleaning method for those with bonded retainers and helps prevent bad breath and gum problems.
2. Use a Floss Threader
Another method of permanent retainer flossing involves using a floss threader. A floss threader is a simple, flexible tool that you will insert underneath the wire of the retainer wire. It will guide floss through the teeth so that you can floss beneath the wire and clean tooth surfaces that are otherwise blocked.
How to use a floss threader:
- Thread a piece of string floss or traditional floss through the loop of the threader.
- Slowly pull the threader under the lingual wire, between two teeth.
- Move the floss in a C-shape along each tooth surface down to the gum line.
- Re-thread and repeat for the next tooth until all teeth are cleaned.
This process can be time-consuming, but it delivers a thorough cleaning of tooth surfaces and helps prevent gum disease, gum inflammation, and bad breath over time.
3. Use Super Floss
Instead of using a floss threader, you can also purchase Super Floss — dental floss that works like a floss threader but with fewer steps. Super floss has a stiff end (or stiff floss end) that can be pushed between the teeth underneath the fixed retainer, just like threading floss with a threader — making the process easier and slightly faster.
All options will remove plaque. However, most people find a water flosser to be the easiest and fastest method for flossing with a permanent retainer. Although a water flosser will be a more significant upfront investment, it can last for many years without needing to be replaced.
Book an Orthodontic Evaluation in Newington, CT
If you’re ready to correct imperfections in your smile or an issue with your bite, contact Greater Hartford Orthodontics today. Our orthodontic specialists offer a variety of treatments including traditional braces, Invisalign, self-ligating braces, clear braces, and behind-the-teeth (lingual) braces. Removable and permanent retainers are available. Send us a message or call 860-667-8277.